Car washer



June 6,1944. W, A, .TKA 2,350,469

CAR WASHER Filed F'e'b. 9, 1945 lia m'zzwmJzz/z@ @www Patented June 6, 1944 UNITED Y STATES vPAfrisur; lo1=1=ici3 l Y I l 42,350,469 I v I l WASHER Williamamtka, Rialto, Calif. Application lebruary'9, 1943, Serial'No. l475,260

' f1 claim; (foils-42er 'I'his invention relates to brushes of the founI tain type suitable for` washing dirtnand. caked mud from automobiles, trucks, railway cars and other vehicles.

An important object of myinvention is to prog vide a brush of the above character in which the head of the brush is hinged to a relatively long tubular handle, the handle at one end being adapted to be connected to a hose for supplying water under pressure to the interior of the handle and at its other end having a flexible connection with the brush head for delivering water thereto. In the preferred form of my invention these connections normally maintain the brush head at the pgoper working angle with respect to the handle bui; are yieldable so as to allow the brush head to assume other angular positions While in use.

Another object of my invention is to provide a brush of the above character which is of relatively simple construction and which is adapted to be manufactured at relatively small cost.

Other objects of the invention will be readily apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the invention, reference being had to the annexed drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side View of a fountain type of brush adapted for washing automobiles, parts thereof being shown in longitudinal section;

Figure 2 is a plan View of the brush head of Fig. 1; and

Figure 3 is a diametrical cross-sectional view through the brush head taken on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

The car washer shown in the drawing comprises a brush head I and a relatively long tubular handle 2 connected thereto for moving the brush head over the surface of the car to be washed. The brush head, as best indicated in Fig. 2, is of circular shape and comprises a wooden disk 3 having a protective felt pad 4 cemented or otherwise attached to its lower face, Overlying the upper surface of the disk is a metal cover v5 conforming in contour to the circular shape of the disk but being slightly dished upon its under surface so as to provide a small space between the disk and cover, as best seen in Fig. 3. The cover is secured in place by means of screws 6 extending through the cover into the wooden disk.

Cemented to the circumference of the disk is a ring of bristles T, these bristles being made of relatively long tufts of hair or liber bound against the edge of the disk by a leather band 'la and together forming the scrubbing elements of the brush. Centrally of the ringed enclosure 'of bristles thereL is provideda vdischargeror'iflce 8 opening throughthe disk 3, felt. pad #and =cover.5, and within this orifice is secured one end of a exible rubber hose section!! through which water is delivered into the areabounded by, the ring of bristles. For anchoring thehose section 9 to the brush head a metal liner I0 is positioned within the hose section, this liner having an intermediate expanded portion Illa adapted to lie between the disk 3 and the cover 5 and be held thereby.

The handle 2 comprises a pipe section I I of relatively small diameter and another pipe section I2 of somewhat larger diameter threaded onto one end of the smaller pipe section and forming an extension thereof. Encircling the pipe section I2 is a hose casing I3 serving as a grip for holding the brush. Extension I2 at its outer end is screwthreaded, as indicated at I4, to permit coupling thereto the end of a hose H leading from a source of water under pressure (such as a city water line) for admitting water to the pipe sections. Pipe section II at the opposite end of the handle is provided with an inverted T-coupling I5, the oitake branch I5a of which extends upwardly and lhas associated With it an elbow I5b. The outlet end of the elbow is directed endwise of the handle toward the brush head I and has connected thereto the inlet end of the hose section 9 leading to the brush head I.

The brush head is pivotally connected to the handle through the intermediary of a fork I6, the main stem of which projects lengthwise from an exteriorly threaded plug I'I screwed into and closing the outer end of the T-coupling I5. The arms of the fork are made of spring metal to allow flexing and their outer ends are secured to a cylindrical sleeve I8 which, by means of pins, is pivotally connected to companion sleeve elements I8a secured to the cover 5.

The operation of the car washer just described is as follows: The end of the handle 2 having been coupled to the hose H and the water turned on through the usual valve connected with the hose, water passes from the hoserinto the handle and discharges from the handle through the hose section 9 into the ring of bristles 'I on the brush head I.

When the brush engages the surface being cleaned, the bristles form a, wall retarding the escape of the water and thus insures a plentiful supply of water within the working area of the brush. By moving the brush head over the surface to be cleaned, the bristles loosen the caked mud thereon while the ood of Water delivered by the hose sluices the dirt away. The felt pad 2 4 on the bottom of the brush head prevents the Wood disk 3 from comingr into contact with the surface being cleaned.

As the brush head is moved over the surface of the Work, it will, by virtue of its pivotal connection with the fork I6 and the stiilly flexible nature of the rubber hose section 9, assume dierent angular positions with Vrespect to the handle so as to accommodate itself to the slope of the work. However.,v theg'hose sect-ioni9finipositivelyy maintainstnefbrusn head' at thepmperv working angle relative to the handle (indicated'in Fig. 1) so as to require no unusual elort on the part ot the car washer in holding the handle againstthe llexure of the hose section.

The hose section 9 is also importantlfcrithe reason that it supplies the: water to the bruh 1 along a relatively wide, arcuatelycurved path* regardless of the angle assume relative `to thel handle.v 'Ijhusv there is no tendency 'for-1' theliose, section Ito vary or to pinch off' theiilow of" waten,When` thef brushf' head pivotsnthehanlfr'a.: "i

` Because the fpipe; section HA4 "of" thev handlev lis smaller thanthepipersection P2, thefwater is ejected at Ahigher Avelocity and 'thusjmore eiecf that the brush head'nla'y hose connected with a source .aT-fitting closing the other end of the handle, gli

e leading4 Off? therefrom,

.jecting from the Working face of the brush head in the'form 'of' an enclosure, a

; armsprojecting upwardly extending branch a brush head, bristles prosal'dtting having an fork having spring forwardly from the tting and pivotally connected to the brush head, and a stllily flexible hose section extend-ing in the form of a, relatively wide rcurve from the-branch through the brush hea-aand communicating withthe enclosed area for supplying Waterthereto.

WILLIAM A. LITKA; 

